The Riots
On January 29, rioters attacked the Thai embassy in Phnom Penh, destroying the building. Mobs also attacked the premises of Thai-owned businesses, including Thai Airways International and Shin Corp, owned by the family of then Thai prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra. A photograph of a Cambodian man holding a burning portrait of the revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej enraged many Thai people.
The Thai government sent military aircraft to Cambodia to evacuate Thai nationals, while Thais demonstrated outside the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok.
Responsibility for the riots was disputed: Hun Sen attributed the government’s failure to prevent the attacks to “incompetence”, and said that the riots were stirred up by “extremists”. The chairman of the National Assembly, Prince Norodom Ranariddh claimed that opposition leader Sam Rainsy had directed the attacks. Rainsy said that he had attempted to prevent the violence.
Read more about this topic: 2003 Phnom Penh Riots